


Barred

by bookwormninja



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 06:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,237
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13141287
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bookwormninja/pseuds/bookwormninja
Summary: Cloud, for some reason or another has been banned from nearly every bar in town save for Tifa's, so the gang decides to do something special for the poor guy to cheer him up.





	Barred

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Nautilusopus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nautilusopus/gifts).



Its not that cloud made it a habit of being kickoff out of bars - it just seemed that every single time he went out, things would just happen around him. A magnet for trouble, his friends call him. 

"Aw, cheer up buttercup!" Tifa slid a freshly poured glass of beer to Cloud as she went about setting up her bar for the evening. Weekends at Seventh Heaven are always busy, but Cloud's seat is permanently reserved, seeing as he isn't allowed into almost every bar in Edge. "At least you're only temporarily banned from Phantom. Everything will blow over faster than you think." 

Cloud groaned loudly.

"I'm pretty sure construction will take at least a couple months. Even then, who's to say I'll be allowed back?" He took a long drink of his beer before sliding his hand tiredly down his face. "It's not like I destroyed half the establishment or anything."

"Come on, don't be so hard on yourself," Tifa said. She was trying get best to cheer he friend, who seemed determined to be miserable about events beyond his control. "It's not like you summoned the monster to the area, planning for it to show up just as you were having a drink with Barret."

She let that statement sit for a beat. 

"Or did you?"

"Of course not, Teef!" Cloud couldn't help but give a weak chuckle at his best friend's attempt at making him feel better. "I guess things could have been worse- I coulda been perma-banned, like at Meteor."

"Goddess, don't remind me." Tifa poured herself a glass of sparkling water before taking a seat beside Cloud at the bar. "That was a wild night. I think all of us besides Barret were banned forever and we didn't even do anything!" Cloud gave her a pointed look. 

"Ok fine, we did... something." Tifa rolled her eyes. "But it was nothing to get banned over! As a fellow bar-owner, I've dealt with much worse."

"Ok, but you're kinda obligated to put up with two drunken fools with buster swords bumbling around your establishment," Cloud said. Finishing his drunk quickly, he hopped over the counter to grab his busboy rags to start table cleanup. "Friendship with me and Zack comes with a lot of perks like free help around the bar, but you also are morally bound to helping us drunkenly stumble our way upstairs at the end of a night of partying and apologizing to storeowners sling the way."

"Yeah, I figured that out after the first year or so," Tifa made a show of scowling before finishing her own drink. "But admittedly, my life would be much more dull without your added shenanigans."

"Well I'm glad to be a source of entertainment for you," Cloud said. "I know how little fun you have in your boring little life." Cloud laughed his way across the room as, he got started cleaning the place for the evening. 

"My life is NOT boring and you know it Cloud," Tifa said. "But you're right- it's probably in large part due to your troublemaking." 

The usual Seventh Heaven crowd came and went, leaving little time for Tifa and Cloud to continue their chat in between filling drink orders and clearing tables. By the time the last customer had been served, Cloud had forgotten his earlier melancholy in favor of the pleasant fatigue he only got from giving himself up to his work. 

"What are you doing?" Cloud, ready to finish up closing up so for the night speed in his tracks as he watched Tifa pull out decorative table coverings from the back of the bar. 

"Well, seeing as it's Christmas, and you're more or less stuck around here for any festivities, the gang and I decided to give you your gift rather early," Tifa said, without looking up from get work arranging the tables and setting out decorations she must have hidden away pretty well. 

Not one to stand around while.others did all the work, Cloud set about helping as well. By the time the two had transformed the bar into their own cozy gathering place, their friends began streaming in the door bearing gifts. 

Zack, surprisingly enough, was the first to arrive. Without taking a moment to set down whatever large objects he ex carrying, the man swooped in to give both Cloud and Tifa loud kisses on the cheek. 

"It's my favorite people! Well, two of them. Don't tell me I made it here first," Zack said, looking around for any sign of the other party guests. 

"Barely." While Zack was enacting a very much exaggerated search of the premises, Cloud opened the door to let in the other guests. In strolled Yuffie, Barret, and Aerith, all carrying gifts of their own.

Soon enough, one of the tables was full of gifts, all addressed to Cloud.

"Alright! Let's get this party started!" Yuffie's exclamation was all that was needed to turn everyone's attention away from greetings and on to the task at hand. "I vote he opens mine first, cuz I said so!"

"You know what, I won't even argue that one since it's Christmas and all," Zack said. He and the others gathered around Cloud, quietly watching his face as careful hands unwrapped the first gift. 

"Do I even wanna know how you got this?" Cloud asked, giving Yuffie am incredulous look.

"You don't." Yuffie smiled as Cloud gave in to laughter. Her gift was a pack of beers unique to one of the many bars Cloud was unable to return to. This particular beer also happened to be his favorite, though he had no memory of ever telling Yuffie that. Picking up on his confusion, Yuffie answered his unasked question. 

"I know some folks, okay? Now maybe this time you can drink it here, where you won't have to deal with jerks who pick fights with you and end up breaking tables and getting kicked out!" 

Cloud laughed, ruffling Yuffie's hair in thanks before moving on to the next gift. 

It was Zack's, since the man hadn’t stopped excitedly rocking on his toes since Cloud touched the first box.

Inside that was another rare beverage that Cloud had no way of acquiring on his own. 

"Remember that one time we both got wasted, and forgot how big and generally not-good-for-public our swords are? Heh, well this is the house special that I'm pretty sure you liked." Zack scratched his head as he paused to think. "Or this is the one you hated and I liked. Either way, one of us will enjoy it. Merry Christmas, bud."

Cloud came to find that this was the theme of the night- his friends had all gifted him with something from a bar he had been banned from as gifts. They all knew that Cloud didn't drink often, but it was touching that they all went out of their way to cheer him up about his string of bad luck at any bar that wasn't Tifa's. 

"You all really didn't have to do this," Cloud said after the party began to wind down.

"We didn't," Tifa agreed.

"But we wanted to," Aerith chimed in. "Plus, it's hilarious having a physical representation of all the places our golden boy has been kicked out of."

 

Cloud sighed dramatically in an attempt to drown out the warm laughter of a room full of his friends. 

"Merry Christmas, guys."


End file.
